**Note: This short piece, was inspired by the cover art of Amazing Fantasy #15; 1962**

Amazing Fantasy

...Grey ominous skies, blanket the beautiful city of New York on a cool autumn afternoon. The usual fare of angry horns and the call of sidewalk beggars fills the otherwise pleasant day. Children laugh as they skip home from school, free from worry and strife. Men and women do their business at all the trendy spots. And in the darkened alleys, outlaws plot and observe their next victim.

From one of those dark alleyways, an unshaven middle-aged man in a dark green jacket that let him blend into the shadow's, watched as across the street a young woman exited the bank he was staking out, in a hurry. The young woman hurried across the street and passed right in front of the alley the man in the green coat waited. Quick as a flash, as the young woman passed, the man grabbed her purse before bolting back down the alley. He was already lost to the shadows, before the young woman let out a scream.

"Stupid broad," the man snarled to himself. He slowed down and began to rummage through the purse, chuckling, "Let's see what kind of presents you have for me today."

A faint sound of silk rubbing against itself, echoed faintly down the dark alley. Spooked, the man's neck darted back and forth, looking for the source of the sound.

"Who's there?" he called out to the shadows. Bending down, the green jacketed man, picked up a piece of discarded lumber and brandishing his new weapon with a few threatening swings, called out again to the shadows, "I know some mooch's there! You'll come out where I can see ya, if you know what's good for ya!"

Silence was his only reply for several moments, than the sound of silk rubbing against silk came once again, and the man felt the piece of lumber jolt in his hand.

"Huh…?" the man questioned, looking at the strange grey snot that had suddenly appeared on the end of his weapon. "What the 'ell is this stuff?"

Another jolt went through his arm, and the man found himself disarmed of his weapon, the piece of lumber tumbled away from him, towards the shadows of the alley.

"Wha…?" the man followed the arc of his lost weapon, his eyes freezing on a spot thirty feet above him, wide in disbelief even when his former weapon landed noisily into a garbage dumpster. His eyes were riveted to a spot where another man dressed in a red and blue spandex costume, gripping a thin greyish wire hung upside down, partially obscured by the shadows of the alleyway that were once the man in the green jacket's ally. Large luminous white eyes bore down at the frightened criminal.

"No! No, that's impossible!" eyes wide in fright, the man slowly began to back away from the ominous figure. "Y-you're just a fairy tale! You don't exist!"

A noise behind him, caused the criminal the jump in surprise, jerking his head around to find it's source, then quickly turning back when he realized his mistake of taking his eyes off of his stalker. He looked, but the man in red and blue had disappeared. He wiped the sweat off of his forehead as he nervously searched for any sign of New York's newest urban legend.

"Just my imagination? I'm sure... " he said to himself, almost positive that what he saw did not happen. He decided to leave, and make his way to his favorite bar, "A few rounds at Josie's is just what I need. Heh, imagine jumping at shadows…"

That's when the man turned his head and came face to mask with the costumed man.

"Boo," the red and blue clothed man nearly whispered.

- {000} -

Screams of the green jacketed wearing criminal were heard all the way down to the front of the bank, where a police officer was taking the victim's statement. Everyone on the street who heard the screams looked up as they got closer. Then suddenly the source was seen, being carried easily fifty feet above the ground by the now visible costumed vigilante.

The crowd below gasped in awe and in fright, as the red and blue masked man, soared high over their heads, swinging on a skinny cable like grey thread, carrying the purse snatcher towards the waiting police officer.

"Oh my God!" called out one excited spectator. "Its…"